I was in the office to do battle again with tons of paperwork.
Aish. I'd rather be in the field again.
But I had to go through all the financial and logistical stuff from the Taipei tour stop, and then later on start working on the next set of tour dates. The next one in the list was Jakarta.
Since it was the first time that a solo concert will be held in Indonesia, I had to work extra hard here to get everything ready.
I checked up on the girls during my break time, sending them text messages to ask how they were doing.
I also asked for updates from the managers who were accompanying them at the moment as well, just to double check.
Man, I really wish I was out there right now instead of being stuck in the office.
After a couple of meetings with the Accounting department and with Jaebum sunbae, I checked my phone again, seeing the replies from the girls and the managers.
As usual, the girls were either cheeky or dorky about their responses while the managers were all business-like.
I chuckled at the huge differences on how they talked to me, even through text messaging.
There was one thing I noticed though.
Ciara was supposed to be here in the office to discuss with me regarding the marketing and promotions for Jakarta and she never showed up.
Shrugging, I dialled her number. Maybe she just got stuck in traffic or overslept or something.Her phone rang for a few moments but she didn't pick up.
I tried calling her apartment she didn't pick up as well. Thinking that she overslept or something, especially given to what happened to her when we were in Taipei, I cut her some slack.
I tried again fifteen minutes later, and there was no response at all. Now that made me start worrying. I looked at my watch, noticing that I still got plenty of time before I would have to do my rounds again on the girls.
I promptly left the office and drove straight to her apartment.
+++
I was knocking on her door and ringing her doorbell but I didn't get any response.
What was worse was that when I asked the front desk security if they had seen her, they said that they didn't even see her enter the building.
Crap.
She never made it home? How the heck did that happen? I knew Nikki and Soojin drove her home earlier today. I've made sure of it. Fishing my phone out, I quickly called Nikki.
"Yes, Y/N sunbae?" she picked up right away.
"Just a quick question," I replied, "You did drop off Ciara at her apartment, right?"
"I did," she answered, "I dropped her off right in front of her apartment building. Why? What's going on, Sunbae?"
"She's not answering her phone and the front desk here in her apartment building said they didn't see her enter the building," my voice was starting to tremble.
"What?" she sounded super surprised. I couldn't blame her, "That's impossible. I made sure she made it home. I'm sorry, Sunbae... I did as you instructed me..."
"It's okay, Nikki," I replied, "Just get back to work. I'll handle it. Thank you."I hung up.
Crap. Where the hell is she?
And then it hit me.
Oh crap... Was she kidnapped?
But I still prayed that I was totally wrong about what I just thought.
Since Ciara's phone, and any of the managers' phones for that matter, wasn't hooked up to my GPS tracking, I had to do a little cyber magic, which took me several minutes.
Okay, I can do hacking, but not at the level that most professional hackers are at."Come on, come on, come on," I mumbled, waiting for my laptop to finish running the program.
After a few more minutes, I heard a pinging sound, telling me that I have found Ciara's location, or at least an estimate of where she was."A house?" I blinked, "What the heck?"
+++
Fifteen minutes later, I was at the said area.
Good thing it still wasn't rush hour, allowing me to speed up a bit on my way here.
A few seconds later, Shinki pulled over beside my car."When you called me a while back, I was like, 'What the...?" he grumbled.
"Well I hope I'm wrong about this," I said.
We observed a couple of vans parked right outside the house. I slowly approached the one on the left, while Shinki covered the one on the right, hoping to get a peek inside.
After a couple of minutes of nosing around, I noticed Ciara's luggage lying on the floor in the van, or at least it looked like hers.
Well, I clearly remember what hers looked like because it was the same one that she used when we were in Japan weeks before.
Suspicious, or maybe even feeling a bit paranoid, we slowly approached the house, watching out for any sign of trouble.
As we got to the front door, I calmly knocked a couple of times.
No answer.
And of course the door was locked. We poked around more, trying to look through windows, looking for another way in.
That's when we heard some muffled noises coming from the second floor of the house.
It sounded like an argument.
Choosing a secluded spot, Shinki gave me a boost, hoping that I could at least eavesdrop a little bit more clearly on what I was hearing.
I kinda had to strain myself a little bit to actually catch on what's going on. But at the same time, I was praying that we won't get caught by anyone.
"I thought I told you a million times already, it's over!"
"No! I won't accept that! I made a mistake, I admit it. Why won't you give me another chance?"
"Do you think dragging me here would make me change my mind?"
"And do you think that showing up again in Y/N's life would make things right? You practically dumped the guy!" That was definitely Ciara's voice. And Carl's, Ciara ex-boyfriend.
What the heck?
Just when I was processing everything in my head, I heard another voice ring out, "Hey! What do you think you two are doing?"
"Oh," Shinki swore, almost dropping me from his shoulders.
Sparing as little time as I could, I looked to see two burly-looking men taking huge, menacing strides towards us.
Guessing that they were not the neighbors, I jumped off Shinki's shoulders, landing in front of him.
"Bodyguards?" Shinki asked. "Probably..." I replied.
"Nobody's supposed to be here," the one of the right growled at us.
"And from the looks of things, the girl upstairs isn't supposed to be here either," I quietly replied, "In fact, she's supposed to be in a meeting right now back in my office."
"I don't know what you're talking about," the other one said.
"Let's just cut the bull and let's get this over with, shall we?" I feigned frustration, "I know that your orders are to beat the crap out of anyone who's trespassing around here."
"And clearly, we're trespassers," Shinki added, much to my surprise.
Three seconds later, Shinki was charging the one on the left, leaving me to deal with the one on the right. Oh great, fisticuffs again.
Great. Why is there always have to be a fight, for chrissakes? The one going for me cracked his knuckles, preparing himself to beat the crap out of me.
I sighed, wishing that we could just end this peacefully.
I ducked the right straight punch that my opponent threw at me, weaving immediately towards him for a quick left jab right at his solar plexus.
I followed it up with an immediate right straight to the same spot, making him gasp for breath momentarily.
But I had to move away quickly, seeing that my punches didn't really faze him that much. I parried and blocked a couple of his one-two combo as I backed away, causing my forearms to sting a bit.
Yep, he was strong, much stronger than I was. I needed to switch strategies.
"Your punches don't hurt me, boy," he said, "You're fast... but you punch like a girl."
I let him come to me, hoping to use his bulk to my advantage.
He charged at me, going for a double-fisted attack.
Again I ducked low and unleashed a short kick, aimed at his right knee. I know it's kinda dirty, but street fights like this usually don't have rules anyway.
I felt my right foot smack right on his kneecap, feeling the bone crack against my shoe's sole. He screamed in pain, stumbling forward. Turning around, I quickly moved out of the way, delivering a last-minute kick to his, forcing him to the ground face first.
He grimaced, holding onto his broken kneecap. That gave me the window that I needed. Wanting to finish this right away, I went to him, hitting him with a solid chop right at the back of his neck, knocking him out.
I turned to Shinki, who was holding his ground pretty impressively.
He just weaved through his opponent's flurry of punches, getting close enough to smack him right on the jaw with a vicious-looking uppercut that I actually heard bone breaking on contact.
The big dude fell flat on his back, out cold as well.
"That wasn't too bad," Shinki said, and then turned to me, "Let's go, Y/N."
All those experiences of getting into a brawl with thugs made this look like a cakewalk.
I nodded, silently hoping that we didn't cause too much of a ruckus.
The bodyguards left the door open. How convenient. As we made our way inside, the arguments got louder and louder.
"No! I won't go back with you, Carl! I have a life here now!"
"Stop kidding yourself! Do you think that Y/N still loves you? It's been more than four years already! Face it, Ciara. You blew it with him when you decided to break his heart!"
"And you blew it when you decided to break mine!" That made the both of us freeze.
Shinki looked at me, his face telling me all of his questions all at once.
"I'll explain later," I whispered.
We crept closer and closer until we reached the door. Of course it had to be locked.
I slowly counted to three with my fingers, before kicking the door open. The trick worked. Our sudden appearance stunned Carl, who to my surprise was holding a gun.
I lunged at him, landing a hard chop right at his wrist, making him drop the gun. Shinki on the other hand immediately went to Ciara, who was bound to a chair.
I immediately followed through. Grabbing his wrist, I twisted my body around, locking my hips on his torso and flipping him up into the air. I slammed him hard on his back against the wooden floor.
Seeing the gun inches away, I kicked it away. It clattered all the way to the opposite side of the room.
Shinki had Ciara in his arms, whispering to her, "It's okay... It's okay... We're here now... You're safe now..." I still didn't let go of Carl's arm, gripping his tightly and securely, "The hell were you thinking? Kidnapping? A gun? Are you insane?" Carl didn't say a word.
At least he was smart enough to see that his situation is hopeless and has accepted defeat. He didn't even ask how I got here and how did I know where they were.
Well, not that it matters now.
Apparently, Carl had a trading business being set up in Seoul. It was an expansion of his existing trading business back home. That explains why he has a house here.
Surprisingly, Ciara requested that we keep this all under wraps and just walk away like nothing happened.
I agreed, hoping that Carl has learned his lesson and would decide not to mess with Ciara again, after what happened to him and his two bodyguards. It's a good thing that he didn't get that much of a beating from me.
"If you ever get near Ciara again or pull a stunt like that, I swear to God I'm gonna kill you," I said to him as we walked out the door of the house.
I waited a few more seconds, letting Shinki and Ciara leave the two of us alone in the living room, before continuing, "And one more thing... Despite what I said just now," I looked at him straight in the eye, "I don't love Ciara... not anymore."
Carl's eyes widened, "Y/N... But... but..."
"How she handles it now is completely up to her," I cut him off, "But I'd rather than you also be out of her life. She clearly doesn't want you around regardless." Carl hung his head, looking totally defeated.
I turned around and slowly walked away.
Shinki walked Ciara to his car, being ever so careful with her as he guided her to the passenger side. Once she was safely in her seat, he went straight to me.
"I'm gonna have her checked at the clinic nearby," he said, "Just to make sure." I nodded, "Okay. You take care of her, and I'll cover for you for the rest of the day."
I made a mental note that he's in charge of Nayeon at the moment, who was in the middle of a CF shoot.
"Thanks," he replied.
"I'll talk to you later, Shinki," I patted him on the shoulder, "Nice work today."
I watched as Shinki got into his car. As he started the engine, I noticed that he took a quick look at Ciara, asking her if she's okay. Well at least that's what I thought he said and did. She nodded, but still looking a bit traumatized.
As they drove off, I got into my car as well. Time to go back to my managerial duties, and probably have a chat with Nayeon as well.
+++
Nayeon looked surprised when I showed up at her photoshoot set. I didn't really blame her.
She knew she was supposed to be with Shinki for the entire day."Omo, Y/N Oppa?" she said, looking like a surprised dork that she actually was, "What happened to Shinki Oppa?"
"We ran into some problems, but I'll explain later," I tiredly replied, "It's not actually a big deal. I'm covering for Shinki for the rest of the day while he handles some stuff he wanted to do."
"Oh... o-okay," she shrugged, "I hope it's not something serious."
"It's not really," I said, "How's your photoshoot going?"
"I have a couple more sets to take, and then I need to select the pictures that I like," she replied.
I groaned.
That would mean at least four more hours. Well, I did want to get out to the field again. I used the time to check up on the girls again, feeling like an old worrywart.
Well, you really can't blame me for being possessive of the girls that I love so much, now would you? Especially given the fact that it's my job anyway to be a worrywart.
+++
Four hours later we were done and on the way home.
I was actually itching to get home because it was already so late into the night.
But on the way, I told her what happened, and why Shinki wasn't able to come back for her.
"Chincha?" Nayeon asked wide-eyed, "Shinki Oppa did that?"
"Yeah..." I replied, feeling a little bit confused about her reaction, "Shinki took care of Ciara afterwards."
"Omo..." she slumped back to her seat, "Really? I would have thought that you would take care of Ciara afterwards.... Now why would Shinki Oppa... suddenly... offer... to do it... and totally forget about me... unless..."
I then noticed her suddenly looking at me as if she connected all the dots together. And that clicked something in my head as well, "...Unless Shinki likes Ciara as well...?"
"Ne!!!" Nayeon excited replied, bouncing on her seat, "If Shinki Oppa likes Ciara, then wouldn't that solve your problem?"I almost hit the brakes at that realization, remembering the look on Shinki's face when we overheard Ciara's argument with Carl earlier today.
Of course at the moment my thinking was way biased until I can get confirmation, but Shinki's shocked look must have made him worry about his own feelings towards Ciara, for fear that she wouldn't feel the same way because of me.
Of course, objectively, he would have been shocked simply because he didn't know what Ciara felt for me.
The only manager who knew the whole story was Jenny sunbae, and she did promise me that she'll keep everything a secret.
What Nayeon said was just too convenient of a way out for me."Omo... Y/N Oppa, that would be so wonderful if indeed Shinki Oppa likes Ciara," Nayeon repeated, "And not to mention it would look so cute too!"
But still, I felt a little rotten and uncomfortable about it. I don't like the possibility of me ending up looking like I was just using Shinki to get rid of Ciara.
Just like what Carl said, Ciara was holding on to that hope that I still love her. But I don't. Not anymore. I have Dahyun, and she has me.
"Don't you like the idea, Oppa?" Nayeon worriedly asked, noticing my silence about what she said.
"No, Nayeon, it's not like that," I replied, weakly smiling as I turned the corner, "It's just that I don't want to end up breaking two hearts. Ciara's still hoping that I still have feelings for her, despite all of my efforts to subtly hint her that I don't anymore. And I don't want her to end up turning down Shinki as well. Come to think of it, Shinki's a good man for her, if she allows him a chance."
"Then maybe you should just clear things up with Shinki Oppa first," she suggested, "Like you told me, he knows how Ciara feels about you anyway." I nodded.
Nayeon did have a point.
I did tell Shinki that I would talk to him later about what happened today, "You're right, Nayeon. Thank you. I will go and talk to him first."
"Oh don't thank me yet, Oppa," she grinned again, "You still owe us for sleeping in Our room earlier today."
The moment I parked the car in the basement, my phone rang.
To my surprise, it was Shinki. Speak of the devil.
"Y/N," he greeted, "Sorry to call you so late, but I was hoping that we can talk?" I looked at Nayeon, mouthing the words "It's Shinki". She nodded, urging me to go for it.
"Uh, sure," I replied, "Where are you? I just got back to the dorm to drop off Nayeon."
"The café across the office sounds okay for you?" he sounded a bit uneasy.
I was actually amused at his obvious discomfit.
"Sure thing," I said, "Gimmie fifteen minutes."
+++
This was getting more and more interesting. Now I really felt that I was in a Korean drama.
The more I thought about it, the more I realized the fact that aside from Jenny sunbae, Shinki was the co-worker that I got so close to as well.
And here he was, right in the middle of a situation where he can potentially save my.
I chuckled at the thought as I entered the café which we usually hang out during our break time whenever we were just stuck in the office.
Come to think of it, Jung Shinki's your typical strong but quiet type of guy.
He doesn't really say much, but you can trust him to get things done.
Also, if there's something in his mind, he just needed a little push. All the girls treat him like a big brother, also ribbing him here and there, and he'd just grin or laugh it off like it was nothing.
I remember at least a couple of occasions where Dahyun and Sana complained that he was too boring, unlike say, other manager, who were very vocal about their interactions with the girls.
I ordered a latte and went to the table where Shinki was waiting.
He looked so nervous. I hope it's for the reason that I had in mind.
"So, what's up?" I immediately asked as I sat down.
"You were never one to go around and beat the bush," Shinki chuckled.
"You call me so late at night when all the girls are already home," I frowned a bit, "So I figured this was something more personal than work related,"
I paused for a bit, briefly deciding to take the first stab at it, "How's Ciara, by the way?" That caught Shinki a tad unawares, "l, uh, Ciara's fine. The doctor checked her out and she's totally fine. I drove her home after I was sure she was all calmed down."
Man, he's gonna be so bad at the card tables. He was doing his best to keep his cool, but nope, not in front me, buddy.
"Good," I replied, "After that mess, I would rather have her back in the team as soon as possible. I was about to discuss with her the marketing and promotions plans for the next tour stop in Jakarta."
"She promised that she'll be back to work tomorrow," he said.
I was honestly feeling sorry for him now, "Alright, Shinki, I know you got something to say. Just spit it out, man."
"It's about what we overheard back in the house," he exhaled deeply, "About what Carl said," and then looked straight at me, "Is it true that you and Ciara had a relationship in the past?"
I exhaled deeply as well, "Ciara and I never became a couple officially. Yes, I was in love with her at that time. Yes, I courted her before," and for some reason recalling that part still hurt, feeling a small pang in my heart somewhere, "But in the end, she turned me down in favor of Carl."
"No wonder you were so shocked when she showed up during that meeting with Jaebum sunbae," Shinki said.
"Yeah... no wonder..." I agreed as the waitress brought my drink, "I kind of risked everything with Ciara back then..." At that point I decided to tell him what happened between me and her, but just the short version of it.
Man, at that point I really had mixed feelings about it now, telling a story that I would rather forget. "I see..." Shinki was now in deep thought, "That's quite a story, Y/N."
"Tell me about it," I quickly replied, "But after so many years, being away from her, travelling the world, eventually ending up here managing Twice, I just want this story to end."
That made his eyebrows shoot up, "Eh?"
"I don't love her anymore, Shinki," I explained, clearing my throat, "What she did to me really hurt me, but I'm just tired of it. All those years apart helped me to get over her, and I'm not intending to go back to that. Not anymore. I'm fine where I am right now." I'll be damned if I tell Shinki about Dahyun.
"Did you tell her about it?" he asked.
"No, not yet," I replied, "Actually I wasn't even expecting to see her again in my lifetime. I didn't even expect her to give me a second chance... a second chance that I just don't want," and then leaned forward on the table, "Why are you asking me about that anyway?"
Shinki shifted in his seat, "Well Y/N... if you don't love her anymore... then that means you don't mind..."
"You taking a shot at her?" I finished his sentence.
He was so obvious at this point.
"Uh, y-y-yeah..." he sounded and looked really surprised, pausing for a bit before catching on, "Am I really that obvious to you?"
"Not until this afternoon," I replied, silently praising Divine Providence that Nayeon was right all along, "I was surprised that you went for Ciara the moment we kicked down that door, and then never let her go ever since," and as an afterthought, "You could have died there had Carl decided to shoot you."
Finally, my drama would have its end soon. "Uh, yeah... sorry, I really didn't think about that..." he mumbled.
"And, you left Nayeon with me to spend the rest of the day with her," I said in mock severity, feeling more relaxed now, "Now if that didn't spell out that you liked Ciara, then I don't know what to say..." and then turned serious, "Look, Shinki. You don't need to worry about what I think. The only thing left for me to do is tell Ciara that I don't love her anymore, and that she should open her heart to freely choose again. If you want, I could even set you up with her later on."
"You will?" that came out almost automatically, "Uh, I mean, uh I don't want to look like it's all scripted and such. You'll break her heart, and then I just happen to drop by and be her shoulder to cry onto?"
"I know it sounds harsh, but pretty much," I shrugged, "I mean, really. If you like Ciara, then just go for it. I leave her to you, with my blessings if you need it. Cruel as it sounds, I got nine very loud and very rowdy girls to deal with each and every single effing day to worry about someone whom I don't have feelings for anymore. Jeez no wonder you immediately asked me about her the moment we got off that meeting."
"Well, if you put it that way..." he replied, sipping the last of his coffee, "Uh, thanks Y/N."
Finally. After weeks of heartaches, I have a chance to finally close this chapter of my life, and at the same time give someone else a chance to his happiness and another to renew her faith in love. Thank you, Jung Shinki.
"Don't thank me just yet," I shook my head, "I still need to deal with Ciara on my own, remember?"
+++
I really couldn't control my feelings the moment I drove off, heading straight back home.
Shinki confessed to me that he did spend the rest of the day with Ciara, even taking her to dinner to distract herself from the afternoon's events.
I just hoped that Ciara would find Shinki to be a good man.
I couldn't believe how convenient this was.
I kicked myself for not seeing it right away, just looking at myself for all the answers when in fact there was just this guy near me who was waiting for his chance.
Even chuckled at the thought that it took yet another bad incident for someone to realize how he felt for a girl and that he should grab that chance as soon as he could.
It happened to me, after being almost blown to smithereens back in Hong Kong. I was literally afraid that I was going to die back there without ever telling Dahyun that I love her.
And now, almost a year later, I am happily in love with her, and she with me. More than five months. That's how much time has passed since Dahyun said yes.
I realized that it was still very early into our relationship, and that a lot of things can still happen.
Ciara just reminded me of that. "Nayeon," I was on hands-free speakerphone mode, "You were right."
"Ha! I knew it!" she excited replied over the line, "I told you so, Y/N Oppa!" And then I heard a second voice, "What's going on? What are you two talking about?" It was Jihyo.
"Oh, I'll tell you later, Jihyo," Nayeon replied, "But right now, I'm here to collect on your debt, Oppa. Don't worry. I told Dahyun already before she fell asleep. Poor girl."
"Wait a minute... that was you?" Jihyo asked, "You put the sleeping pills into their food? No wonder you insisted on making our midnight snack tonight."
I just heard Nayeon giggle mischievously, "So we won't be disturbed tonight."
"Whut?" I managed to say.